Broad roads, big city

Here we are at Karachi and for one of the first time in this tour, take a deep breath, I sweat. It happened a couple of times in Faisalabad, standing outdoors around mid-day, but there was still a chill breeze that compensated for it, a breeze that would bite more and more as the day wore on. The air in Karachi has a stillness about it, capable of inducing a slight stickiness. The whistles sound shriller. It could easily have been Mumbai.

First impressions? Broad roads, big city. Those who planned this city, a local informs me, allocated a large part of the space for construction of roads. Driving on them, especially in the traffic-less nights, must be enjoyable. It was refreshing zooming through Sea View, with the adjoining beach providing relief. It could easily have been Chowpatti.

In a couple of day’s time, Karachi will host two big events – a Test against India and a Bryan Adams concert. The first hasn’t happened in more than 16 years; the second hasn’t happened. Adams will be the first big western pop star to perform here. Having been brought up in a city where Elton John, Roger Waters and Mick Jagger played within a year, it was slightly strange to notice the anticipation.

Karachi is different from Lahore (and a few locals like telling you that). Just a day old in this city, it’s tough for me to compare the two but Bina Shah, in her short story titled ‘A Love Affair with Lahore’, has an interesting nugget:

As it always happens, one learns about the best parts about a city when one has left it.